BSU News

OPC holds Oct. 16 clinic on tree stand safety

October 11, 2013

Minnesota’s firearm season for deer hunting begins Nov. 9, and the Bemidji State’s Outdoor Program Center wants to provide hunters with a way for hunters to help prevent serious accidents related to falls from tree stands.

The clinic begins at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 16, in the Gillett Recreation-Fitness Center lobby and is free to attend. The OPC will have rigging kits – which include a Swiss seat, locking carabiner, prussic and 9.5mm anchor line – available at the clinic for $35.

Tree stand accidents are the leading cause of injury to hunters, accounting for more than 90 percent of hunting-related emergency room visits. Statistics show that one in three people who hunt from an elevated stand will have a fall resulting in serious injury.

The safety clinic, taught by center director Mark Morrissey, will show hunters how a few simple rock-climbing skills and basic equipment can be used to build a lightweight, strong and versatile system that will help prevent injuries at an affordable cost far below the $100 commonly charged for similar commercial systems.

The clinic will include a complete walkthrough of the equipment and will involve setting up outdoors with an on-site tree stand for hands-on practice.